Developing Professional Best Practices

“Best practices” is a buzzword often heard throughout business circles these days. And indeed, there are a lot of things that can be categorized as such, but there is often a variety of opinions about what specifically should be done when you are looking into developing as a professional.

Here are a collection of things you can do that are often considered the best way to move toward better development in the workplace:

First, write out a self-evaluation. This should include your strengths, weaknesses, what you love, what you hate, hard skills, soft skills, and any training that you have successfully completed. This is one place where you need to remember not to discount the soft skills, as many people do. They are essential as you move up the corporate ladder. Remember, you aren’t expected to be good at everything at the early stages of your career, however, you are expected to be honest about what areas you may lack proficiency. This list is only for yourself, and doesn’t need to be shared.

Next thing you will want to do is look for any Dale Carnegie Training professional development seminars that are taking place in your area. Match these seminars up with some of the skills on your list and see if there are any you can attend that will give you an opportunity to begin working on skills you need help with. In the meantime identify any books, teachers in your company, or anything else that you can learn from. If you mentor under someone in your same company you may be able to get in on some of their meetings and learn from those who have already climbed the ladder.

Keep up on the corporate news. Not the gossip, but the news about the company, and about the industry. Know what clients you have and what you are doing for them. Use any piece of knowledge you can find and incorporate it into your growing body. Using these methods you will be able to grow both your business network, and your skill sets. This will make it easier for you to develop as a professional and provide for a quicker journey up the corporate ladder.

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